Heather Mack assessed in police hospital.
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Heather Mack being assessed in police hospital in Bali, where she has been arrested with her boyfriend Tommy Schaefer over murder of suitcase victim Sheila von Wiese-Mack

news.com.au

15 Aug 2014

THE teenage daughter arrested on suspicion of murdering her mother and stuffing her body into a suitcase in Bali is pregnant, as claims about her mistreatment while in police custody have boiled down to a row over KFC.

Denpasar Police Chief Djoko Hari Utomo confirmed today that Sheila von Wiese Mack’s daughter Heather Mack, 19, from Chicago, is pregnant but said it was a normal pregnancy and not an ectopic pregnancy, which can be fatal.

Earlier, Mack told police after her arrest that she had an ectopic pregnancy.

Mack and boyfriend Tommy Schaefer, 21, are in custody in Bali, suspected of killing the 62-year-old in her room at the five-star St Regis Resort at Nusa Dua before stuffing her body in a suitcase and dumping it in a taxi.

Mr Utomo has also denied claims that Mack had been badly treated while in police custody in Denpasar.

To the contrary, he said, she had been treated “especially” given her young age.

“We have already given treatment that is more than normal,” he said, responding to claims from Mack’s US lawyer that she had not been treated well.

“We give the same food for all suspects. We also give special attention to her as she is still young. This is a transition period for her,” Mr Utomo said.

He said if the lawyer wanted to allege the police had used violence toward Mack he was welcome to provide evidence of this.

Police sources said the couple had been given KFC chicken to eat and this had angered Mack’s boyfriend Tommy Schaefer, 21, who told police it was insulting as he has black skin and KFC is for the lower echelons of society.

Police were taken aback at this allegation, claiming that in Bali KFC is expensive for the average income earner and not at all for the lower wage earners.

A policeman looking at a suitcase where a woman’s body was found inside. Picture: AFPSource: AFP

Mack was visited again today by a medical team at the police jail where she is held in Denpasar.

The confirmation of Mack’s pregnancy comes as the couple could be sentenced to death if they are charged and then found guilty of murdering Mack’s mother Sheila.

Mack’s pregnancy could complicate police calls for her to face the firing squad over a crime they now believe was premeditated, and should carry the death penalty.

They can be held for some time before formal charges are laid.

Meanwhile, authorities in Bali said today that Sheila von Wiese Mack’s body is expected to be returned to the US on Wednesday after an autopsy on the weekend found she had suffered a broken neck, broken nose and asphyxiation.

Dr Dudut Rustyadi, the forensic chief at Sanglah hospital morgue in Denpasar and police chiefs, along with the FBI agent, are currently meeting in Denpasar about the bizarre case.

“The body will be flown to the US on Wednesday early in the morning. We have to conduct the administrative process first before handing over the body,” Dr Rustyadi said.

Dr Ida Bagus Putu Alit, from the forensic team, said the autopsy found signs of violence from blunt objects and many defensive wounds, indicating that Mrs Mack had fought hard for her life.

She was still alive at 3.45am because she was captured then on CCTV footage in the lobby of the hotel and at 6.45am she called reception, asking for a wake-up call at 10am that day. But at 10am when staff tried to call the room there was no answer.

Dr Rustyadi said there were wounds in and around the face and back of Mrs Mack’s neck.

“From the wound, we found violence using blunt objects. We found many wounds, open wounds and bruises, including wounds on her left arm. We allege that the victim fought,” he said.

Under scrutiny ... an Indonesian police officer escorts Tommy Schaefer, left, as he is brought to the police station for questioning in relation to the death of his girlfriend's mother, in Bali, Indonesia. Picture: APSource: AP

Both Mack and Schaefer have been questioned by Bali police investigating the grisly murder but have not confessed and want their American lawyer present for further questions.

However, heather Mack has claimed that three men wearing masks burst into her mother’s room at the resort.

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